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Full vulnerability report · 2018
CVE-2018-6981High confidence

VMware VMware ESXi, VMware Workstation, and VMware Fusion: Use of Uninitialized Resource

VMware · VMware ESXi, VMware Workstation, and VMware Fusion

8.8HighCVSS 3.1
Recommended action
Within 7 days

High technical severity; prioritise exposed affected systems while verifying vendor guidance.

Fix not verified
Optional official sources

National CERT insights
?CERT means Computer Emergency Response Team; CSIRT is the closely related term Computer Security Incident Response Team.

Select the national-authority views to include. The exact source language is shown on each matched advisory. Your choice is remembered on this device and encoded in the shareable URL.

Official European source

ENISA European Vulnerability Database

Official EUVD identifiers, advisory evidence and known-exploited context. Missing fields are not treated as evidence of low risk.

1 current
ENISA EUVD identifier

EUVD-2018-18725

No EUVD known-exploited evidence

ENISA has published the identifier mapping but no EUVD description has been stored yet.

EUVD state
Present in the current official mapping
Known exploitation
Not present in the current ENISA EUVD known-exploited dataset. This is not proof of no exploitation.
ENISA score
Not supplied in the stored EUVD record
Advisory evidence
No linked advisory details stored yet
Recommended actionWithin 7 days

High technical severity; prioritise exposed affected systems while verifying vendor guidance.

Fix not verified
01

What, why and how

VMware ESXi 6.7 without ESXi670-201811401-BG and VMware ESXi 6.5 without ESXi650-201811301-BG, VMware ESXi 6.0 without ESXi600-201811401-BG, VMware Workstation 15, VMware Workstation 14.1.3 or below, VMware Fusion 11, VMware Fusion 10.1.3 or below contain uninitialized stack memory usage in the vmxnet3 virtual network adapter which may allow a guest to execute code on the host.

What

VMware ESXi 6.7 without ESXi670-201811401-BG and VMware ESXi 6.5 without ESXi650-201811301-BG, VMware ESXi 6.0 without ESXi600-201811401-BG, VMware Workstation 15, VMware Workstation 14.1.3 or below, VMware Fusion 11, VMware Fusion 10.1.3 or below contain uninitialized stack memory usage in the vmxnet3 virtual network adapter which may allow a guest to execute code on the host.

Why

The product uses or accesses a resource that has not been initialized.

How

An attacker operating through local access may attempt exploitation with low privileges. If successful, the issue may execute code or commands in the affected security context.

What

VMware ESXi 6.7 without ESXi670-201811401-BG and VMware ESXi 6.5 without ESXi650-201811301-BG, VMware ESXi 6.0 without ESXi600-201811401-BG, VMware Workstation 15, VMware Workstation 14.1.3 or below, VMware Fusion 11, VMware Fusion 10.1.3 or below contain uninitialized stack memory usage in the vmxnet3 virtual network adapter which may allow a guest to execute code on the host.

Why

The product uses or accesses a resource that has not been initialized.

How

An attacker operating through local access may attempt exploitation with low privileges. If successful, the issue may execute code or commands in the affected security context.

02

Exploit reality and attack path

CVSS severity, EPSS forecast probability, public exploit material and CISA-confirmed exploitation are separate signals.

Observed exploitation
?Confirmed exploitation and public exploit material are separate signals. Attacks can occur without public proof-of-concept or exploit code.
No confirmed evidence

No CISA KEV match was present at the last successful refresh. This means no confirmation from that source, not proof of no exploitation.

Public PoC / exploit material
?Confirmed exploitation and public exploit material are separate signals. Attacks can occur without public proof-of-concept or exploit code.
None recorded

No exploit-tagged reference or CISA SSVC proof-of-concept state is currently recorded. Research may still exist outside the structured feeds.

Likely attack path
local access → Use of Uninitialized Resource → execute code or commands in the affected security context
Attack surface
Local
Privileges required
Low: a basic authenticated account is required
User interaction
None
Attack complexity
Low: no specialised conditions are recorded
Security boundary
Changed: exploitation can affect a different security authority
Weakness
?CWE means Common Weakness Enumeration: a standard category for the underlying weakness.
CWE-908 ↗

CWE-908: Use of Uninitialized Resource. The product uses or accesses a resource that has not been initialized.

CVSS vector
?CVSS means Common Vulnerability Scoring System. The vector records the metric values used to calculate technical severity.
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:H/A:H

Common Vulnerability Scoring System 3.1: the compact vector below is decoded into plain language.

AVLocalAttack vector: The attacker needs local access to the vulnerable system.ACLowAttack complexity: No specialised conditions are required beyond attacker-controlled input.PRLowPrivileges required: The attacker needs basic user-level privileges.UINoneUser interaction: No action by another user is required.SChangedScope: The attack can affect a component governed by a different security authority.CHighConfidentiality impact: A successful attack can cause a major loss.IHighIntegrity impact: A successful attack can cause a major loss.AHighAvailability impact: A successful attack can cause a major loss.
Post-exploitation / living off the land
After compromise, an attacker may use built-in shells, scripting engines, scheduled tasks and native network utilities for discovery, persistence or movement. This is a plausible LoTL path, not evidence that it has occurred for every attack.
Remote code executionCWE-908
A

Official authority intelligence

Only matched European and national findings are included. Language selectors and unavailable sources are omitted.

CERT-FR · French · CERTFR-2018-AVI-542Multiples vulnérabilités dans les produits VMware

De multiples vulnérabilités ont été découvertes dans les produits VMware. Elles permettent à un attaquant de provoquer une exécution de code arbitraire à distance et une atteinte à la confidentialité des données.

Official advisory ↗
JVN iPedia · Japanese · JVNDB-2018-014292複数の VMware 製品における初期化されていないリソースの使用に関する脆弱性

複数の VMware 製品には、初期化されていないリソースの使用に関する脆弱性が存在します。

Official advisory ↗
KISA KrCERT/CC · Korean · KNVD-4954VMware 제품군 보안 업데이트 권고

#### VMware 제품군 보안 업데이트 권고 2018.11.12 ##### □ 개요 o VMware 社는 자사 제품에서 발생하는 취약점을 해결한 보안 업데이트 발표 o 공격자는 해당 취약점을 이용하여 악성코드 감염 등의 피해를 발생시킬 수 있으므로, 최신 버전으로 업데이트 권고 ##### □ 주요 내용 o ESXi, Worksatation, Fusion의 가상 네트워크 어댑터에서 초기화되지 않은 메모리를 재사용하여 게스트 사용자가 호스트에서 임의코드를 실행할 수 있는 취약점 (CVE-2018-6981) [1] o ESXi의 가상 네트워크 어댑터에서 초기화되지 않은 메모리 사용으로 인해 호스트에서 게스트로 정보가 누수되는 정보노출 취약점 (CVE-2018-6982) [1] ##### □ 영향을 받는 시스템 o CVE-2018-6981 소프트웨어 명 영향 받는 버전 최신 패치 버전 ESXi 6.7 ESXi670-201811401-BG 6.5 ESXi650-201811301-BG 6.0 ESXi600-201811401-BG Workstation 15.x 15.0.1 14.x 14.1.4 Fusion 11.x 11.0.1 10.x 10.1.4 o CVE-2018-6982 소프트웨어 명 영향 받는 버전 최신 패치 버전 ESXi 6.7 ESXi670-201811401-BG 6.5 ESXi650-201811301-BG ※ vmxnet3 가상 어댑터를 사용하지 않는 시스템은 영향 받지 않음(CVE-2018-6981, 6982) ##### □ 해결 방안 o 아래 참고 사이트의 Solution 부분을 참고하여 최신버전의 소프트웨어 설치 [1] ##### □ 기타 문의사항 o 한국인터넷진흥원 인터넷침해대응센터: 국번없이 118 [참고사이트] [1] https://www.vmware.com/security/advisories/VMSA-2018-0027.html

Official advisory ↗
03

Patch and workaround

Operational remediation based on structured source evidence.

Status
?Patch availability is based on structured fixed-version fields and authoritative update references. If no fix is verified, check the vendor advisory before making a change.
Fix not verified
Affected
VMware ESXi, VMware Workstation, and VMware Fusion: VMware ESXi 6.7 without ESXi670-201811401-BG, VMware ESXi 6.5 without ESXi650-201811301-BG, VMware ESXi 6.0 without ESXi600-201811401-BG, VMware Workstation 15, VMware Workstation 14.1.3 or below, VMware Fusion 11, VMware Fusion 10.1.3 or below
Fixed
No fixed version is explicitly recorded in the structured CVE data.
Action
No verified patch reference is present in the current structured sources. Check the vendor advisory before making a change.
Workaround
No verified workaround is recorded. Limit untrusted access and use least privilege until authoritative guidance is available.
04

Evidence and provenance

Published 4 Dec 2018 · Last source change 5 Aug 2024, 06:17 UTC · CWE-908 · Use of Uninitialized Resource

CVE recordCVE.org · 5.1
CVSS sourceNIST NVD
EPSS source
?The date BlackTree first stored a score for this CVE from the daily FIRST EPSS feed.
FIRST · tracked since 2026-09-01
European sourceENISA EUVD · EUVD-2018-18725
Product sourceCNA
Remediation sourceCVE/CNA references
CWE sourceNIST NVD
NVD statusNVD modified after enrichment

Core structured fields are present and their contributing authorities are shown above.

Material change intelligence

What changed after publication

View recent updates ↗
  1. Vendor guidanceAuthoritative vendor guidance changed from no authoritative guidance recorded to vendor advisory.
    Before
    no authoritative guidance recorded
    After
    vendor advisory
    af854a3a-2127-422b-91ae-364da2661108 ↗
  2. SeveritySeverity changed from Unknown to High.
    Before
    Unknown
    After
    High
    NIST NVD ↗
  3. CVSS scoreCVSS score changed from not recorded to 8.8 (CVSS 3.1 · NIST NVD · CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:H/A:H).
    Before
    not recorded
    After
    8.8 (CVSS 3.1 · NIST NVD · CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:C/C:H/I:H/A:H)
    NIST NVD ↗
  4. ENISA EUVD mappingEUVD-2018-18725 was added to the official ENISA EUVD mapping for this CVE.
    Before
    not recorded
    After
    {"euvdId":"EUVD-2018-18725"}
    ENISA EUVD ↗
  5. Catalogue recordCVE added to the BlackTree catalogue.
    CNA ↗
Material fields only · duplicate refreshes suppressed · history retained for the configured operational retention period
CVE published
ENISA EUVD · EUVD-2018-18725↗Vendor advisory↗CVE authority or vendor reference↗Official CVE record (CNA and ADP data)↗NVD record↗
Technical terms and abbreviations used in this report
CVE
Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures: the public identifier for one disclosed vulnerability.
CVSS
Common Vulnerability Scoring System: a technical severity framework; it is not patching priority by itself.
EPSS
Exploit Prediction Scoring System: FIRST's estimate of the probability that exploitation activity will be observed in the next 30 days; it is a forecast, not confirmation.
CWE
Common Weakness Enumeration: the standard category describing the underlying software or hardware weakness.
CNA
CVE Numbering Authority: an organisation authorised to assign and publish CVE records.
CISA ADP
Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency Authorized Data Publisher: structured enrichment added to a CVE record.
NVD
National Vulnerability Database: NIST's enrichment service for CVE records.
CERT / CSIRT
A computer security incident response team that publishes warnings or coordinates incident response.
PoC
Proof of concept: public material that demonstrates or helps reproduce exploitation.
CSAF
Common Security Advisory Framework: a machine-readable format for security advisories.
LoTL
Living off the land: abuse of legitimate tools or system functions during an attack.
Free version - for non-commercial use only.CVE-2018-6981 · cve.blacktree.nl